Jacob Frederico Torlade Pereira de Azambuja was the Portuguese chargé d'affaires in the United States from 1829-1834.
Torlade d'Azambuja's essay on the monetary system of Portugal was presented to the American Philosophical Society in October 1833, and was read at the meeting of October 18. Written in Portuguese, the essay deals with one of the burning issues of the Jacksonian era, the money system, by examining the history of coinage and the money system in Portgual from the earliest times. Peter Stephen Du Ponceau translated the chapter titles as follows:
The letter of presentation (in French) from Azambuja to Du Ponceau, Oct. 15, 1833, is tipped into the front of the volume, along with a brief summary of the contents of the paper, in English, in Du Ponceau's hand.
Gift of the author, October 1833.
Cite as: Jacob Frederico Torlade Pereira de Azambuja, Memoria sobre o valor das moedas, American Philosophical Society.
Recatalogued rsc, April 2003.
This bound volume contains an essay Jacob Frederico Torlade Pereira de Azambuja presented to the American Philosophical Society in 1833. Jacob Azambuja was the Portuguese charge d' affaires in the United States from 1829-1834. The essay describes the monetary history and system of Portugal. Presented after Andrew Jackson's election, banking and currency were important political topics at the time. This essay likely reflects the growing interest APS members had in the subject and in understanding alternative systems to the United States. The essay can offer insight into prevalent European ideas about currency and may offer insight into how these ideas may have influenced how Americans thought about reforming their system.